1. Field
The present invention relates to a standup exercise apparatus that simulates walking and jogging with arm exercise. More particularly, the present invention relates to an exercise machine having separately supported pedals for the feet and arm exercise coordinated with the motion of the feet where the pedal stride length is determined by the movements of an operator.
2. State of the Art
The benefits of regular exercise to improve overall health, appearance and longevity are well documented in the literature. For exercise enthusiasts the search continues for safe apparatus that provides full body exercise for maximum benefit in minimum time.
Recently, a new category of exercise equipment has appeared on the commercial market referred to as user defined motion elliptical cross trainers. These cross trainers guide the feet along a closed loop shaped curve to simulate the motions of jogging and climbing with varying stride lengths but tend to be complex and costly to fabricate. The shorter stride lengths have pedals which follow closed loop curves that are generally elliptical in shape. However, the longer stride lengths have pedals which follow somewhat different closed loop elongate curves. There is a need for a less complex user defined motion exercise apparatus capable of long, medium and shorter stride lengths where the pedals follow generally elongate curve paths.
User defined motion elliptical cross trainers without cams are shown in Rodgers, Jr. U.S. Patent Application Nos. 2009/0181828 and 2009/0156369 as well as U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,520,839 and 7,530,626 which show a pendulum striding exercise apparatus having foot support members hung from generally horizontal pivoted beams driving cranks to achieve the varying stride length pedal curves. Rodgers, Jr. in U.S. Patent Application Nos. 2009/0156370, 2009/0203501 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,507,184 show exercise apparatus with flexible support elements having varying stride lengths. Miller in U.S. Patent Application No. 2009/0105049 also shows an exercise apparatus having varying stride lengths. Chuang et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 7,608,018 shows a user defined motion elliptical apparatus that has two cranks.
It is an objective of this invention to provide an improved exercise apparatus having varying stride lengths determined by the movement of an operator. A further objective is a less complex exercise apparatus having varying stride lengths where the pedals follow elongate curves for short, medium and long stride lengths.